Category Archives: U.S. Secret Service

New Breed of Fuel Pump Skimmer Uses SMS and Bluetooth

Posted on by

Fraud investigators say they’ve uncovered a sophisticated new breed of credit card skimmers being installed at gas pumps that is capable of relaying stolen card data via mobile text message, thereby enabling fraudsters to collect it from anywhere in the world. One interesting component of this criminal innovation is a small cellphone and Bluetooth-enabled device hidden inside the contactless payment terminal of the pump, which appears to act as a Bluetooth hub that wirelessly gathers card data from multiple compromised pumps at a given filling station. Continue reading New Breed of Fuel Pump Skimmer Uses SMS and Bluetooth→

Secret Service: Theft Rings Turn to Fuze Cards

Posted on by

Street thieves who specialize in cashing out stolen credit and debit cards increasingly are hedging their chances of getting caught carrying multiple counterfeit cards by relying on Fuze Cards, a smartcard technology that allows users to store dozens o… Continue reading Secret Service: Theft Rings Turn to Fuze Cards→

USPS Site Exposed Data on 60 Million Users

Posted on by

U.S. Postal Service just fixed a security weakness that allowed anyone who has an account at usps.com to view account details for some 60 million other users, and in some cases to modify account details on their behalf.

KrebsOnSecurity was contacted last week by a researcher who discovered the problem, but who asked to remain anonymous. The researcher said he informed the USPS about his finding more than a year ago yet never received a response. After confirming his findings, this author contacted the USPS, which promptly addressed the issue. Continue reading USPS Site Exposed Data on 60 Million Users→

U.S. Secret Service Warns ID Thieves are Abusing USPS’s Mail Scanning Service

Posted on by

A year ago, KrebsOnSecurity warned that “Informed Delivery,” a new offering from the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) that lets residents view scanned images of all incoming mail, was likely to be abused by identity thieves and other fraudsters unless the USPS beefed up security around the program and made it easier for people to opt out. This week, the U.S. Secret Service issued an internal alert warning that many of its field offices have reported crooks are indeed using Informed Delivery to commit various identity theft and credit card fraud schemes. Continue reading U.S. Secret Service Warns ID Thieves are Abusing USPS’s Mail Scanning Service→

Secret Service Warns of Surge in ATM ‘Wiretapping’ Attacks

Posted on by

The U.S. Secret Service is warning financial institutions about a recent uptick in a form of ATM skimming that involves cutting cupcake-sized holes in a cash machine and then using a combination of magnets and medical devices to siphon customer account data directly from the card reader inside the ATM. Continue reading Secret Service Warns of Surge in ATM ‘Wiretapping’ Attacks→

Secret Service Warns of Chip Card Scheme

Posted on by

The U.S. Secret Service is warning financial institutions about a new scam involving the temporary theft of chip-based debit cards issued to large corporations. In this scheme, the fraudsters intercept new debit cards in the mail and replace the chips on the cards with chips from old cards. When the unsuspecting business receives and activates the modified card, thieves can start draining funds from the account. Continue reading Secret Service Warns of Chip Card Scheme→

First ‘Jackpotting’ Attacks Hit U.S. ATMs

Posted on by

ATM “jackpotting” — a sophisticated crime in which thieves install malicious software and/or hardware at ATMs that forces the machines to spit out huge volumes of cash on demand — has long been a threat for banks in Europe and Asia, yet these attacks somehow have eluded U.S. ATM operators. But all that changed this week after the U.S. Secret Service quietly began warning financial institutions that jackpotting attacks have now been spotted targeting cash machines here in the United States. Continue reading First ‘Jackpotting’ Attacks Hit U.S. ATMs→

Trump’s Dumps: ‘Making Dumps Great Again’

Posted on by

It’s not uncommon for crooks who peddle stolen credit cards to seize on iconic American figures of wealth and power in the digital advertisements for these shops that run continuously on various cybercrime forums. Exhibit A: McDumpals, a hugely popular carding site that borrows the Ronald McDonald character from McDonald’s and caters to bulk buyers. Exhibit B: Uncle Sam’s dumps shop, which wants YOU! to buy American. Today, we’ll look at an up and coming credit card shop called Trump’s-Dumps, which invokes 45’s likeness and promises to “make credit card fraud great again.” Continue reading Trump’s Dumps: ‘Making Dumps Great Again’→

Trump’s Dumps: ‘Making Dumps Great Again’

Posted on by

It’s not uncommon for crooks who peddle stolen credit cards to seize on iconic American figures of wealth and power in the digital advertisements for these shops that run continuously on various cybercrime forums. Exhibit A: McDumpals, a hugely popular carding site that borrows the Ronald McDonald character from McDonald’s and caters to bulk buyers. Exhibit B: Uncle Sam’s dumps shop, which wants YOU! to buy American. Today, we’ll look at an up and coming credit card shop called Trump’s-Dumps, which invokes 45’s likeness and promises to “make credit card fraud great again.” Continue reading Trump’s Dumps: ‘Making Dumps Great Again’→

Inside Arizona’s Pump Skimmer Scourge

Posted on by

Crooks who deploy skimming devices made to steal payment card details from fuel station pumps don’t just target filling stations at random: They tend to focus on those that neglect to deploy various tools designed to minimize such scams, including security cameras, non-standard pump locks and tamper-proof security tape. But don’t take my word for it: Here’s a look at fuel station compromises in 2016 as documented by the state of Arizona, which has seen a dramatic spike in fuel skimming attacks over the past year. Continue reading Inside Arizona’s Pump Skimmer Scourge→